Research Memo #2

Further into my research I began to wonder. Questions filled my mind and the one that I was determined to find an answer for was “How do psychological implications of Breast Cancer impact a family’s relationship?” As I got deeper into the research I ran across a few different articles that answered my question and many other essential questions.

     “The effects of breast cancer on the family” by Linda Ray is broken down into three sections, this article further explains to me the implications that breast cancer can have on a family. Section 1 focuses around the stress and fear that is presented to the breast cancer patients and to their family. Families where the mother is the primary caregiver, breast cancer can plunge others into the role. It is stated in the article, that often during treatment, the patient is unable to perform the duties the family has come to expect, such as cooking and cleaning, grocery shopping, and taking children to activities. Dealing with this issue personally, I know that a lot is expected from the child, such as helping the patient more often than not. When talking with my grandmother, she said that she felt abandoned and upset because she could no longer do vicarious activities anymore, but a simple solution to the problem for both the patient and family member would be to just ask for help and adjust to suit everyone involved. This can help to relieve stress. Section 2 and 3, focuses on the depression and confusion that comes from breast cancer. Both the patient and family members can feel a great deal of sadness and depression. Studies from NIH reports show that adult family members who have experienced a loss to cancer in the past are most likely to develop depression.  Children can become confused and begin to worry when they see their mother or family member sick and unable to tend to their needs. Children also begin to also notice the fears and anxieties presented by the patient. Therese Rando, the author of the groundbreaking book “Grief, Dying, and Death: Clinical Interventions for Caregivers” define anxiety as an emotion initiated by fear.(LiveStrong.com) Breast cancer patients should strive to maintain their own mental health and also maintain a positive outlook so the children will not become scared.  Honestly, dealing with this from experience, it is best if the patient explains the process and continues to perform as many activities as they would normally be able to perform. (Jhanai Aiken) 

Research Question: How do psychological implications of Breast Cancer impact a family’s relationship?
Breast Cancer Patient	Studies show that breast cancer patients become saddened and depressed because they can no longer do the things that are expected of them by family members. A person with breast cancer can become stressed and have a great deal of fear because they had already experienced someone in the past that passed away due to cancer.
Family Member/Children	Family members and children can develop a state of confusion because they don’t understand or don’t know what is going on. Family members and children can also notice the fears and anxieties presented by the patient, causing them to worry because they see the patient is sick and unable to tend to their needs.

The cost of cancer treatment can be costly. It can take a toll on a breast cancer patient’s health, emotions, time, relationships, and wallet. Breast cancer patients with no health insurance may have extra worries when facing such serious and expensive diagnosis. While digging deeper into my research I noticed that having health insurance is not always beneficial.  It is no guarantee that the patient will be protected from major and life changing expenses if you have cancer. Whether or not you have health insurance, there are things a patient can do to try to lower the cost of cancer and its treatments. It is often possible to cut the cost and still get excellent cancer care. For many people with breast cancer, there are medical expenses from things such as: doctor visits, clinic visits for treatments, procedures, lab test, image testing, drug cost, hospital stay, surgery, and at home care.

In conclusion, I found that most of the studies show a significant relationship between psychological factors and emotional factors, but in all actuality, psychological change related to emotions are not constantly measured across studies and the findings for many of the psychological changes with emotional changes. More research is necessary regarding the role of social support, marriage, minimizing and denial, depression and restriction of emotions on breast cancer.